Ticket touting is one of the known massive problems in the event industry, with technological advancement it became easier for secondary sellers to resell event tickets at inflated prices. Many tickets are being re-sold, which is changing the shape of the event industry.
Ticket touting and fraud leave both fans and event organizers frustrated. Whether it’s inflated prices from scalpers or counterfeit tickets ruining the experience for genuine fans, the consequences are harmful to everyone involved. Our event platform is designed with cutting-edge technology and proactive measures to tackle these issues head-on.
Here’s how our white-label event platform combats ticket touting and ensures a safe, smooth ticketing experience for organizers, venues, and attendees alike. Read this blog to find out everything from what is event ticket touting to how it affects the industry and how you can prevent it with an event management system.
What is Event Ticket Touting?
Event ticket touting, often referred to as ticket scalping, is the practice of buying tickets to events, such as concerts, sports games, or theater performances, and then reselling them at a markup. This practice is often viewed negatively as it can lead to inflated prices, making it difficult for genuine fans to access tickets at reasonable rates.
A recent example of ticket scalping is for the highly anticipated Coldplay concert for which BookMyShow revealed the ticket sales on 22 September 2024. They received a maximum number of ticket purchase requests from two individuals against whom the platform has taken timely action, ensuring to crack down on the black market ticket sale.
How Ticket Scalping Affects the Event Industry?
Ticket scalping, the practice of reselling tickets at inflated prices, has become a significant issue, impacting various stakeholders, including consumers, event organizers, and the broader market. Here’s a detailed look at how ticket scalping affects the event industry:
Increased Prices for Consumers
One of the most direct effects of ticket scalping is the increased cost for consumers. When scalpers purchase tickets in bulk, they often resell them at prices significantly higher than face value. This practice can lead to:
Financial Barriers: Many fans, particularly those on a budget, are priced out of attending events they are passionate about.
Perception of Unfairness: Consumers may feel that the system is rigged against them, fostering resentment towards both the scalpers and the ticketing platforms.
Limited Access to Tickets
Ticket scalping can severely limit access for genuine fans. When scalpers use automated bots to buy tickets, it leaves little to no availability for regular consumers. Fans get disappointed and frustrated when they spend hours in virtual queues and find that tickets are sold out by the time they reach the front.
Damage to Brand Reputation
For event organizers and ticketing platforms, the prevalence of scalping can harm their reputation and customer trust. This can manifest in several ways:
- Public Backlash
- Negative Media Attention
Loss of Revenue for Event Organizers
When tickets are resold, the original organizers do not see any of that revenue, which can impact their budget for future events. Ticket scalping can create an unpredictable financial environment for event organizers, making it difficult to plan and budget effectively.
Increased Legal and Regulatory Scrutiny
The rise of ticket scalping has prompted governments and regulatory bodies to take action against the practice. Some regions have implemented laws aimed at curbing scalping, which can impose restrictions on ticket sales and resales. This leads to increased compliance costs for event organizers.
Check the below YouTube video to find out more about how ticket touting affects the event industry:
How Ticket Touting Mechanism Works?
The report shows that almost 90% of tickets are resold by the “traders” on one or other ticket reselling platform. It’s found that the trader sells more than 100 tickets per year. Ticket touting involves a range of strategies and techniques that scalpers use to purchase and resell tickets at inflated prices.
Understanding this mechanism can help event organizers recognize and combat the issue. Here’s a detailed breakdown of how ticket touting works:
Initial Ticket Acquisition
The first step in the ticket touting process is the acquisition of tickets during the official sales period. Scalpers employ several methods to secure as many tickets as possible:
- Bots and Automation
- Multiple Accounts
- Networking and Insider Knowledge
Ticket Resale
Once scalpers acquire the tickets, the next step is to resell them, usually at a markup. Scalpers typically list the tickets on secondary marketplaces (e.g., Viagogo, StubHub, or Craigslist) at inflated prices. They often use persuasive language in their listings to entice potential buyers.
Some scalpers use dynamic pricing techniques, adjusting ticket prices based on demand and market conditions. For example, if an event sells out quickly, they may increase prices significantly. They may employ marketing tactics to promote their tickets, creating urgency by indicating limited availability or using misleading claims about ticket scarcity.
Manipulating Demand and Scarcity
Scalpers create a sense of urgency and scarcity to drive up demand for the tickets they are reselling. By hoarding tickets and not listing them all at once, scalpers can create a perception that tickets are scarce, encouraging buyers to act quickly. They often target fans’ emotional connection to events, exploiting the desire to see a favorite artist or team. This emotional manipulation can lead to hasty buying decisions at inflated prices.
Targeting High-Demand Events
Scalpers focus on events that are highly anticipated or have a large fan base, including:
- Concerts
- Sporting Events
- Cultural Events
Around 11% of participants in the Statista acceptance level ticket scalping survey admitted that they would only purchase tickets at official or discounted prices.
Source: (Statista)
How Does Our Secure Solution Help Event Organizers Tackle Ticket Touting?
Ticket touting, or scalping, poses a significant challenge for event organizers, leading to inflated prices, decreased accessibility, and negative consumer sentiment. However, our secure event ticketing solution is designed to help you tackle the issue. Here’s how our platform addresses the issue and creates a safer, more transparent ticketing environment.
Personalized, Non-Transferable Tickets
To prevent ticket hoarding and reselling, our platform utilizes personalized digital tickets. Each ticket is linked to the buyer’s identity, with information such as their name and contact details embedded into the ticket. This makes it harder for scalpers to purchase multiple tickets and sell them at inflated prices.
Event organizers can opt for tickets that cannot be easily transferred, reducing the ability for touts to sell them on the secondary market. They can create a ticket that contains a unique QR code that is scanned upon entry, ensuring that only the legitimate ticket holder can attend the event.
Secure Digital Wallet Integration
Our open-source event ticketing system allows attendees to store their tickets in secure digital wallets, making it even harder for touts to manipulate the system. By tying tickets to secure digital identities and wallet systems, we create an extra layer of protection against unauthorized ticket transfers and fraud.
Attendees can store their tickets securely in apps like Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, which adds another level of verification and reduces the chance of fraud or resale.
Blockchain Technology for Immutable Ticket Ownership
One of the most powerful features of our platform is the use of blockchain technology to track ticket ownership. Blockchain creates a transparent, immutable ledger that records each ticket’s history from the point of sale to the moment it is scanned at the event.
Once a ticket is purchased, it is recorded on a blockchain, creating a permanent record that cannot be altered or duplicated. This advanced technology usage ensures that every ticket is genuine, eliminating the possibility of counterfeit tickets entering the system.
AI-Powered Fraud Detection and Monitoring
We utilize artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to monitor ticket sales in real-time. Our platform analyzes purchase patterns and detects suspicious activities, such as bulk purchases from the same user or IP address, which could indicate ticket touting. By identifying these patterns early, our system can flag and block scalpers before they can resell tickets.
Dynamic Pricing to Reduce Scalping Incentives
Dynamic pricing is another tool our platform offers to prevent scalping. By adjusting ticket prices based on real-time demand, we can make it less appealing for touts to purchase large quantities of tickets and resell them at higher prices.
Our platform enables event organizers to increase ticket prices as demand rises, ensuring tickets are sold at fair market value. By dynamically adjusting prices, the platform removes the financial incentive for touts to buy tickets at lower prices and resell them at a markup.
Enforced Ticket Limits
To prevent bulk buying, we enforce strict ticket limits based on user data. Each account is only allowed to purchase a set number of tickets, reducing the possibility of scalpers buying large quantities to resell later.
Organizers can set specific limits on how many tickets an individual can buy per event, making it more difficult for touts to exploit ticket sales. Our platform verifies user accounts through various means, ensuring that each buyer is genuine and reducing the likelihood of scalping.
Comprehensive Reporting and Analytics for Event Organizers
Our platform also offers advanced reporting and analytics, providing event organizers with insights into ticket sales patterns. This data helps identify trends and potential risks, enabling organizers to take proactive measures to stop ticket touting.
Detailed analytics allow event organizers to see how tickets are being sold and identify any abnormal activity that could indicate touting. Event organizers receive notifications about suspicious buying patterns or spikes in demand, allowing them to adjust sales strategies accordingly.
Offer a Safer, More Transparent Ticketing Experience with Us!
Ticket touting is a persistent problem, but with the right technology, it can be effectively managed. Our event management and ticketing platform –EventZ empowers organizers to fight touting and fraud, ensuring that tickets end up in the hands of real fans. By using tools like blockchain, AI-driven fraud detection, dynamic pricing, and verified resale markets, we create a more transparent and secure ticketing process.
With our platform, event organizers can not only protect their revenue but also enhance the overall attendee experience by ensuring tickets are sold fairly and securely. If you’re looking for a solution to tackle ticket touting head-on, our platform offers the perfect blend of technology and flexibility to safeguard your events.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What are the common methods used by scalpers to acquire tickets?
Scalpers often employ various strategies to acquire tickets, including using automated bots to purchase large quantities, creating multiple accounts, and leveraging insider knowledge about ticket releases.
What are personalized, non-transferable tickets, and how do they help?
Personalized, non-transferable tickets are digital tickets linked to the buyer’s identity, making them difficult for scalpers to resell. This ensures that only the original purchaser can attend the event, reducing the likelihood of inflated resale prices.
How do bots contribute to ticket touting?
Bots are automated software programs that can rapidly purchase large quantities of tickets during sales. Scalpers use bots to bypass waiting rooms and virtual queues, allowing them to acquire tickets that should have been available to genuine fans.
Can event organizers customize ticket purchase limits?
Yes, event organizers can set specific ticket purchase limits based on their preferences and event needs. This flexibility helps prevent bulk buying by scalpers while ensuring that genuine fans have fair access to tickets.
How do enforced ticket limits impact fan experience?
Enforced ticket limits ensure that more fans have the opportunity to purchase tickets by preventing scalpers from hoarding tickets. This creates a fairer purchasing environment, improving overall fan satisfaction and experience.
What are some signs that a ticket might be counterfeit?
Common signs of counterfeit tickets include poor quality printing, lack of security features (like holograms or barcodes), and discrepancies in event details (like date or venue). Always verify tickets purchased from unofficial sources before attending an event.
How does your platform protect against bulk purchasing by scalpers?
Our platform employs several strategies, including ticket limits per user account, real-time monitoring of purchasing patterns, and verification processes to detect and block accounts attempting to make bulk purchases.